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Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush are dealing with the baggage of their political histories even before their 2016 campaigns officially begin.

For the former secretary of state, the new scrutiny of Clinton Foundation donors especially foreign governments and wealthy non-U.S. citizens is bringing back memories of Whitewater and the selling of the White House Lincoln Bedroom to political patrons.

Revelations about the Clinton Foundations donor list causedThe New York Times to editorialize that someone needed to reinstate the foundations ban against foreign contributors, who might have matters of concern to bring before a future Clinton administration.

Much attention was given to Jeb Bushs speech this week in Chicago in which he paid due deference to his father and older brothers achievements but added, I am my own man. In a question-and-answer session that immediately followed the speech, he also acknowledged that there were mistakes made in Iraq, for sure.

The focus on their histories, and that of their families, is enough to make the assumed frontrunners dwell on William Faulkners famous words, the past is never dead. Its not even past.

Still, some observers argue that, just as the duos decades in the public eye have given them records on which they can be attacked, it has also tempered them so they are better able to withstand the heat.

Tony Fratto, who served as deputy press secretary to President George W. Bush, said that while people will be interested in the pasts of Clinton and Jeb Bush, they're both skilled in getting people to see past that.

The difference with [Bush and Clinton] is that they've got a lot of experience in having to answer these types of questions, having to deal with unfortunate situations, Fratto added. They have what you might not expect from other candidates and campaigns who will overreact, try to hide it, not have a clear answer. With both of these candidates, they've been around it for so long and know how to deal with these situations.

Terry Shumaker, a former U.S. ambassador who co-chaired Bill Clinton's New Hampshire campaigns and is involved in Ready for Hillary in the Granite State, argued it was unrealistic to expect anyone who can entertain realistic hopes of entering the White House to have lived a blank, unblemished life.

When people get to the high level of running for president, they've lived interesting, complicated lives in the private and public sectors and have done a lot. But I think voters are going to look beyond that stuff. They're more interested in whos going to be the best president. Elections are about the future not the present or the past.

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Hillary Clinton, Jeb Bush and the problem with baggage